THE  JEWS’  TWO  SHIPS. 


By  DR.  FRANK  CRANE. 

- i '-“(TVffw-rtght.  1019,  by  Prank  Crane. )~  '-J. 

'0.1  73  I have  just  seen  two  pictures  in  the  paper,  and  my  heart 
C / is  pounding. 

One  is  of  the  steamship  Westward  Ho  being  loaded  with 
tons  of  grain,  thousands  of  cases  of  condensed  milk,  and  other 
life  sustaining  provisions,  purchased  with  the  American  Jewish 
Relief  Funds  and  American  Polish  Relief  Funds,  for  the 
starving  women  and  children  of  Poland.  The  port  of  destina- 
tion is  Danzig,  where  the  cargo  will  be  transported  overland  to 
stricken  communities.  The  cost  of  this  cargo  exceeds  TWO 
MILLION  DOLLARS. 

The  other  is  of  the  steamship  Pensacola  starting  on  its 
long  voyage  to  the  Near  East,  bringing  life  and  happiness  to 
thousands  in  Palestine,  Syria  and  Armenia.  Ports  of  destina- 
tion are  Constantinople  and  Beirut.  .The  provisions  were  pur- 
chased by  the  Joint  Distribution  Committee  of  the  American 
Jewish  Relief  Funds  and  the  American  Committee  for  Relief 
in  the  Near  East.  The  cost  of  this  cargo  is  ONE  MILLION 
EIGHT  HUNDRED  THOUSAND  DOLLARS. 

Jews  mean  nothing  to  me,  nor  do  Gentiles,  nor  Baptists, 
nor  Patagonians,  nor  Southerners,  Mahometans,  nor  Irish. 

All  these  Classes,  Races,  Sects,  Labels,  Fences  and  Pigeon 
Holes  are  Holdovers  of  dead  contentions. 

They  are  the  Vermiform  Appendices  of  Progress  and  the 
Body  Politic  would  undoubtedly  be  better  off  for  a surgical 
operation. 

Still,  Classes  linger,  and  will.  We  shall  go  on  being  proud 
of  our  Church,  Pedigree,  and  Locality. 

And — 

If  so — 

The  one,  only  and  wholly  admirable  way  to  justify  our 
Class  is  by  Superiority  in  Helpfulness. 

Heaven  knows  we  have  killed  and  hated  enough  because  of 
our  Differences.  Let  us  now  compensate  History  by  a most 
strenuous  rivalry  in  Charity,  “for,”  says  Bacon,  “in  all  things 
else  there  is  danger  of  excess,  but  in  Charity  there  can  be 
no  excess.” 

I love  every  Jew  in  the  world  for  those  two  ships’  sake. 
I would  kiss  every  pretty  Jewish  girl,  salute  every  rich  Jew, 
and  take  my  hat  off  before  every  Synagogue,  for  those  two 
ships'  sake. 

Though  not  bom  of  this  ancient  race,  I am  sending  along 
a little  contribution  to  Nathan  Straus,  who  called  my  attention 
to  these  ships  (or  rather  to  Arthur  Lehman,  Treasurer,  20  Ex- 
change Place,  New  York),  and  ask  the  reader  to  do  likewise. 
We  can  justify  ourselves  by  what  George  Ade  says:  “I  have 
lived  in  several  towns,  but  I cannot  remember  the  names  of  a 
place  in  which  Jews  were  exempted  from  contributing  to  Gen- 
tile funds.” 


(From  the  New  York  Globe) 


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